Improvement in knitting-machines



JOHN M. ARMOUR. Improvemnt in Knitting-Machines.

Patented April 25, 1871.

-LITHUIMAPHICGflMX/OS80RNE3 PROCESS) 11M. PHOTO TTNITED STATE PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN M. ARMOUR, 'OFSYRAOUSE, YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN KNITTING-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 113,965, dated April 25, 1871.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN M. ARMOUR, of the city of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of New York, have invented a certain new and Improved Knitting-Machine; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction of the same, and the form thereof when complete and ready for use, reference being bad to the annexed drawing, forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of the whole machine. Fig. 2 is a view of the needle-bar, needle, and stitch-hook. Fig. 3 shows another form of needle and stitch-hook, operatingin the same general manner. Fig. 4 is illustrative of one mechanism for reversing the needle. Fig. 5 represents an extended surface of the sleeve covering the drum and cam-wheel.

The letters used represent 'correspondin g parts wherever they occur.

A is a metal base, with a slot, a, about half an inch wide, more or less, and about twenty inches in length, and having guideways a a, of suitable size to direct the movement of the carrier-frame D.

B is an arm for supporting the needle-bar, and which may be cast as part of the base A; or it may be securely attached in any ordinary manner.

D is the carrier-frame, having thereon, upon plates arranged for that purpose, the series ofstitch-hooks h h, in two rows, as shown in the drawing, and the rack R, with teeth t t t, to receive a movement from the cams on the drum and cam-wheel G.

The carrier-frame D has two thin plates of metal, I) b, about an inch in width and about ten inches in length, placed parallel with each other, and about one-eighth of an inch apart; and it is better to scarf ofi the side on which the stitch-hooks are arranged near the top to give more room for the operation of the needle.

0n the outer side of each of these plates, and near the upper edge thereof, are attached. the series of stitch-hooks h h, so constructed and arranged as to allow the point of the needle n to enter the stitch already made, and held upon the hook between the stitch-hook and the plate, and, havingentered such stitch, to pass down between the hook upon which hollow curved needle or attached thereto.

such stitch has been formed and the preceding hook, thus taking off the old stitch, and, as the needle passes that hook, putting the new stitch on the hook just passed.

0 is the drum and camwheel, and has a sleeve or band, d, surrounding the drum-wheel proper, with properly-arranged slots, in which three cams change, which work in the teeth of the rack of the carrier-frame, and impart to it the peculiar motions necessary for taking off the old stitch on the hooks and putting on the new one as the work progresses.

No. 1, the first of the cams, causes the carrier-frame to go forward half the distance between any two of the hooks, bringing it so'as to insure the entry of the needle-point in the old stitch behind the stitch-hook between the hook and plate.

The moment it reaches that point with the old stitch upon the point of the needle, the second cam, No. 2, causes the carrier-frame to recede to its former position, thus allowing the needle to pass down between the hooks, taking with it the old stitch and carrying it off the hook.

i The needle passes down as far as it will go, andjust at the point of its beginning to return the third cam, No. 3, begins to operate, and carries the frame the entire distance from the center of the space between the last two of its old stitch to pass under the curve of the needle, catching the thread beneath the hook as it passes, and securing a new stitch.

The operation of reversing these cams, and

the method of pivoting the same to effect that object, will be described hereafter.

F shows a reversible needle-bar, with the The thread enters the needle near its upper end, and passes through the hollow part of the same, and is given out through an aperture near its point, substantially in the manner shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing.

The needle n is so placed in the needle-bar F that its point will necessarily come down near to the plate on which the stitch-hooks are attached, and then the cams will operate as above described.

The needle-bar F is operated in a frame, G,

at the end of the arm B, by means of a crank and pitman connected with the drum'and camwheel'O, substantially as shown in the drawing; or it may be done in any ordinary manner.

Two adjustable stops, S S, are placed upon the rack R, and so arranged that by means of a stop-pin, in anyordinary mechanical manner, they can be set at anypoint upon the rack,

and thus made to determine the width ofthe web.

As the carrier-frame moves forward until the stop is reached, it is made to operate upon the sleeve d of the drum and cam-wheel O by coming in contact with the short lever L, which runs-acrossthe drum proper under: the sleeve 01.

His fulcrumed .in therniddleuponn-the drum-wheel proper, andhas a shortpoint, p p, at each endthereofi-with which =the-stop on the carrier comes in contact, and the-sidepoints 0 0, branching off from the main lever,

bear uponthe cam-surfaces w w on thesideiofthe sleeve, so that when thefipoints ptorp come down uponsthe stops S or S, they operate to removethezsleeve to the other side, and :thus

reverse the regulating-cams. This-lever L-v also reverses the needle by operating the lever M, which is fulcrumed upon asmall armrunning up from the base, and has a pin in the lower end of it, whichrunsin the groove 9 in thesleeve, and at the other end is attached to the small rack operating the. pinion N, placed around the needle-bar, substantiallyas shown in the drawing.

The upper end of the:le ver M shouldbe properly slotted, so as to-operatewith-the small rack .or pinion N. in either-position thereof. 1 The drum and cam-wheel C will be placed upon an axle, substantially as shown in the drawing,..or in any other convenient manner,- to receive the propelling power.

The-above form for needle-reversingarran gement is vmoreparticularly adapted. to the knitting of a continuous web.

Thework is set up at the commencement by simply loopingthe threads across the top from .one stitch to its opposite on theother plate, and so on until the desired widthof Web is reached; then putting overrthecrossed threads a bent wire, between the plates on which the-hooks are placed, and attaching them to a weight sufficient to easily carry the Web down.

The machine, with all the parts as above described in place, will then be ready to start and the needle will perform its work.

The plates for the stitch-hooks may be placed at such angle with the carrier-frame as may be desired, the needle being adapted thereto.

,Another mode of reve; sing the needle would be by means of spiral grooves crossing each other upon a thimble, substantially in the form shown in Fig. 4, through which thimble the needle-bar operates, with a lever operated from the drum-wheel in any ordinary manner,

'with a;'s1ide in the end of it'which will conform to either of the grooves in the thimble and cross the other, passing out of the groove at its upper end, thus coming: down Without turning the thimble. By this arrangement the lever can be made to turn the needle whenever desired and-whichever Way it may find it.

..Insetting .upythe work the lever may be Hmadeto turn the needle at every revolution of the drum =or=stroke ofthe needle; and that also will make ribbed WOIk,'Wl1i0h,- at the proper time, can readiIybechanged to'plain.

By using at-needle with :the body thereof like'that shown inFig. 2, but with thepoint turned to one side, as shown inl3ig. 3, half the distance between the centers of any two'hooks, so that the point of the needle will passdown behind the-hook carrying the stitch off, while the body of the needle passes down betweenthe '2 hooks, cams Nos. 1 and 2 will be dispensed with. .In'that casethe hook is made as in the other instance, exceptth'at .it is not fastenep to the plate from the centerof the hook, but

., at oneside, so that the point of the needlewili pass. 'quite.-down-behind the'hook. Thus all that'isrequired in this connection for a plain .circularzhub wouldbe one cam not-reversible, one needlef not reversible, with thestitchhooks properly arranged .u'ponthe outer edge of a cylinder.

In case'the stitch-hooks are placed upon a cylinder, the number of needle arrangements may .be increased as desired, and one made to follow the other around the hub.

Two needles may alsobe used on-the machineshown inthe drawing, by soarranging the needles that they will operate opposite to each other and both turn at theends-or whenever desired.

What I claim as my invention, and desire tosec-ure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination 'ofthe needle 42 and stitch-hooks h h, constructed and arranged in relation to each other, and operating together, substantially as hereindescribed,so that they perform by their own motions the entire work .of knitting without auxiliary orv intermediate devices, as herein specified.

2. The reversible'needle n, in combination with two rows or sets of stitchhooks, h h, when arranged .and operating as described, so

. as to knit either plain circular work or ribbed WOIk, or work changeable from plain to rib work, and vice versa, substantially as herein, specified.

3. The combination of the stitch-hooks h h and carrier-plate b, so arranged together that the stitches are held open laterally by the said. hooks and plate, and also afford space between them to allow the needle to enter the stitches thereof, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

4. The drum 0 and the cams and reversing mechanism thereon, for imparting the movements to the stitch-hook carrier, and for reversin g the needle, substantially as herein described.

JOHN M. ARMOUR.

Witnesses:

N. B. SMITH, G. W. SMITH. 

